UConn's Olander suspended after DUI arrest

Kevin Duffy

Updated 11:06 pm, Monday, September 9, 2013

UConn senior frontcourt player Tyler Olander has been suspended indefinitely following a DUI arrest late Saturday night.

The arrest, as first reported by the Journal Inquirer of Manchester, occurred at 10:49 p.m. on Route 195. Olander, according to the police report, failed field sobriety tests and was subsequently charged with operating a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol/drugs, operating (or towing) an unregistered motor vehicle and operating a motor vehicle in violation of classification.

This past March, Olander was arrested on trespassing charges while in Florida for spring break. He was reportedly stripped of his captaincy after that incident.

It's unclear if this latest arrest -- his second in six months -- will cause him to miss any playing time. It is clear, though, that UConn needs bodies up front: Olander's classmate, 7-footer Enosch Wolf, had his scholarship revoked after a February arrest involving a domestic dispute. Wolf was given the option to return as a walk-on, but instead decided to go pro in Germany.

With Wolf gone, UConn's frontcourt looks super-thin. Junior DeAndre Daniels, a natural wing, mans the four-position while playing time at center is up for grabs among Olander, sophomore Phil Nolan and freshmen Amida Briah and Kentan Facey.

To complicate things even further, Facey's eligibility is under NCAA review due to an issue regarding his transfer from Jamaica to high school in the United States. If he and Olander are out, the Huskies won't have many options in the frontcourt.

Throughout his three-year career, Olander has averaged 3.2 points and 3 rebounds in 15.7 minutes. He started 26 games as a junior before fracturing his left foot against South Florida on March 6. With the exception of a breakout 16-point, seven-rebound performance versus Notre Dame, Olander's 2012-13 campaign was rather disappointing. The 6-foot-9, 230-pound Mansfield native went the entire season without recording a double-double.